This order is subject to further editing and
modification.The final version will
appear in the bound volume of the official reports.

No.11-08

In the matter of the petition to amend Supreme Court
Rule 40.02(2) and to create Supreme Court Rules 40.055 and 40.14(3)(i)
relating to the legal competence requirements of graduates of law schools in
other nations; fees.

FILED

NOV 1, 2012

Diane M. Fremgen

Clerk of Supreme Court

Madison, WI

On November 18, 2011, the Board of Bar Examiners (BBE),
by its director, Jacquelynn Rothstein, filed a petition with the Wisconsin
Supreme Court.The petition requested
the court amend Supreme Court Rule (SCR) 40.02(2) and create SCRs 40.055 and
40.14(3)(i) to permit eligible graduates of law schools from other nations to
sit for the Wisconsin bar examination.

On May 16, 2012, the court held a public hearing on the
petition.BBE Director Jacquelynn
Rothstein presented the petition to the court.John Ohnesorge, Director, East Asian Legal Studies Center, University of
Wisconsin, joined by Attorney Eric W. Ibele and Jason Smith, Graduate Programs
Director, requested the court consider some amendments to the BBE's petition to
reflect the needs of the U.W. Law School.Attorney Daniel Shneidman also requested some changes to the petition,
as drafted.

The court discussed the petition at its ensuing open
administrative conference.The court was
favorably disposed to the petition.The
court discussed the fact that the proposed rule is modeled, in part, upon New
York's rule, 22 NYCRR 520.6, allowing graduates of foreign law schools to sit
for that state's bar exam on certain conditions.The applicable conditions depend in part upon
whether the applicant obtained his or her law degree in a nation whose
jurisprudence is based on the principles of the English common law.

The court expressed concern that the rule, as proposed
by the BBE, would be extremely restrictive.The court recommended the BBE consult with and consider the
recommendations made by the representatives of the U.W. Law School and the
suggestion of Attorney Shneidman.

The court voted unanimously to return the matter to the
BBE for further development.

The BBE submitted the revised rule petition to the
court in the form of a letter on August 15, 2012.The court discussed the revised petition at
its open administrative conference on September 19, 2012.The court voted unanimously to approve the
revised petition, with minor revisions.Therefore,

IT IS ORDERED that, effective December 1, 2012, the
supreme court rules are amended as follows:

SCR 40.055Legal competence requirement: Graduates of
Law Schools in Other Nations.Notwithstanding SCR 40.04(1), an individual who has received a law
degree in a country other than the United States may apply to take the
Wisconsin bar examination, provided the applicant satisfies all of the requirements
of subs. (1) or (2):

(1) The
applicant holds a first professional degree in law from a jurisdiction whose
jurisprudence is based on the principles of English common law and from a
school or schools each of which, throughout the period of the applicant's
study, was recognized by a competent accrediting agency in such country as
qualified and approved, and meets all of the following requirements:

(a) The applicant has a license to practice
law from a common-law jurisdiction and is in good standing in that
jurisdiction.

(b) The applicant has been substantially
engaged in the practice of law in a common law jurisdiction for at least three
of the last ten years prior to filing an application to take the Wisconsin bar
examination.

(2) The
applicant holds a first professional degree in law from a school or schools
each of which, throughout the period of the applicant's study, was recognized
by a competent accrediting agency in such country as qualified and approved,
and the applicant has completed a masters of law degree (L.L.M.) that meets all
of the following requirements:

(a) The program consists of a minimum of 24
semester hours of credit, or the equivalent thereof, if the law school is on an
academic schedule other than a conventional semester system that, except as
otherwise permitted in this rule, shall be in classroom courses at the law
school in substantive and procedural law and professional skills. No credit
shall be allowed for correspondence courses, on-line courses, courses offered
on DVD or other media, or other distance learning courses.

(b) The program requires a minimum of 700
minutes of instruction time, exclusive of examination time, for the granting of
one semester hour of credit.

(c) The program includes a period of
instruction consisting of no fewer than two semesters of at least 13 calendar
weeks each, or the equivalent thereof, exclusive of reading periods,
examinations and breaks, and shall not be completed exclusively during summer
semesters, except that a maximum of six semester hours of credit may be earned in
courses completed during summer semesters.

(d) The program is completed within 24
months of enrollment.

(e) Unless otherwise waived by the board,
all coursework for the program is completed at the campus of an American bar association
approved law school in the United States.

(f) The program completed by an applicant
includes all of the following:

1. A minimum of two semester hours of credit
in the values and ethical responsibilities of the United States legal
profession and its members.

2. A minimum of two semester hours of credit
in legal research, writing and analysis, which may not be satisfied by a
research and writing requirement in a substantive law course.

3. A minimum of two semester hours of credit
in American legal studies, the American legal system or a similar course
designed to introduce students to distinctive aspects and/or fundamental
principles of United States law, which may be satisfied by a course in United
States constitutional law or United States or state civil procedure.

4. A minimum of six semester hours of credit
in any of the subjects included in SCR 40.03 (2) (a) or (b).

(g) The program completed by an applicant
may include:

1. A maximum of four semester hours of
credit in clinical courses, provided all of the following requirements are met:

a. The clinical course includes a classroom
instructional component in order to insure contemporaneous discussion, review
and evaluation of the clinical experience;

b. The clinical work is done under the
direct supervision of a member of the law school faculty or instructional staff
whose primary professional employment is with the law school; and

c. The time and effort required and
anticipated educational benefit are commensurate with the credit awarded.

2. A maximum of six semester hours of credit
in other courses related to legal training taught by members of the faculty of
the law school or of the university with which the law school is affiliated, or
taught by members of the faculty of any university or college with which the law
school offers a joint degree program, provided such courses must be completed
at the campus of such university or college in the United States.

(3) Applicants
shall submit proofs and documentation that the board may require.Documents must be in English or must be
accompanied by a translation into English prepared and certified by a neutral
translator.

(4) An
applicant shall file all application materials and fees with the board by
August 1 to be eligible for the February bar examination and by January 1 to be
eligible for the July bar examination.

(5) Notwithstanding
SCR 40.14 (3) (i), the board may add a surcharge in individual cases if it
finds that extraordinary costs have been or will be incurred in its
investigation of the applicant’s qualifications.

Section 3.40.14 (3) of the supreme court rules is
amended to read:

(3) The
following fees are payable to the board:

(a)Bar
examination fee$450

(b)Late fee for
bar examination $200

(c)Fee for
application for admission on

proof of
practice elsewhere $850

(d)Admission fee
$100

(e)Fee for
reinstatement, readmission,

late
admission on diploma privilege

or late
enrollment in the bar $200

(f)Application
fee for change of name $ 25

(g)Fee for a
character and fitness

investigation
under SCR 40.06(3m) $210

(h)Late fee for
a character and fitness

investigation
under SCR 40.06(3m) $200

(i)Fee for
admission for graduates of

law
schools in other nations$850

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that notice of this amendment of the
supreme court rules be given by a single publication of a copy of this order in
the official publications designated in SCR 80.01, including the official
publishers' online databases, by the state bar of Wisconsin, and on the
Wisconsin court system's web site.